Nightfall

Translator: TransN  Editor: TransN

After Ning Que uttered these words, quietness prevailed in the old library. Chen Pipi stared at his eyes and fell into a long silence before his thick lips slightly moved and uttered, “You look really beautiful.”

Upon hearing this, Ning Que became angry and glared back at him, coldly saying, “Even if you refuse to tell me about the exam papers, you don’t need to talk to me with this attitude. I don’t believe that I won’t be admitted to the Second Floor without your help.”

Chen Pippi looked at him and compassionately shook his head, saying, “You’ve said many times that you wanted to enter the Second Floor, and I didn’t care much about it. And thinking that your talents weren’t really much worse than mine, it won’t be too difficult to defeat those so-called geniuses, like Xi Chengyun, after cultivating for more than six months under my guidance, but… Some things aren’t meant to be. West-Hill Divine Palace is unexpectedly willing to let Long Qing come to Chang’an City, and you have no hope to defeat that guy.”

“I remember very clearly what you said a few days ago, that Prince Long Qing was somewhat weak in your eyes, like cats and dogs. Now you say I’m totally incomparable with him. So do you mean I’m even worse than cats and dogs?”

Ning Que said, angrily waving his sleeves.

Chen Pippi raised his fleshy arm and patted him on his shoulder, and sincerely comforted him. “Do you need to make it so clear? I didn’t speak frankly because I just worried that I would hurt your dignity too much.”

“Then what does it matter to tell me about the exam paper?” Ning Que cried in annoyance. “It’ll do you no good if I can’t enter the Second Floor. If Prince Long enters the Second Floor and finds out your true identity, you would get into a lot of trouble!”

“Because you’re out of luck.”

Chen Pippi looked at him in sympathy and said, “Although the Second Floor will be opened on the date that was proposed last year, the Second Brother and professors of the front department have taken charge of this matter, since the Headmaster of the Academy and Eldest Brother haven’t returned from their travels.

“The professors won’t let me see the exam paper. Even if I knew about it, I wouldn’t take the risk of being whipped by the Second Senior in order to let you know. Second Brother is upright and earnestly hates nothing more in his life than evil tricks and blatant manipulations. If he knows that you want me to help you in this way, you’ll be beaten up and driven out, even if you have already entered the Second Floor.”

He patted Ning Que on his shoulders once again, and soothingly said, “You’re really out of luck. If the Headmaster and Eldest Brother were in, I might go to plead for you. The Headmaster would most likely agree to specially enroll you since they’re so affable. What a pity.”

Ning Que sat crossed-legged on the floor, thinking that his own luck was poor to the extreme, and he could not help bitterly murmuring, “The Headmaster is too irresponsible since he has spent a whole year on his tour. How could there be so many fun places in the world?”

Chen Pipi looked disdained and laid bare his mind. “Why do you want the Headmaster to hurry back to the Academy? Isn’t it because you hope that he can help you in the exam?”

After a brief moment of silence, Ning Que made a heavy thump on the floor and looked up at Chen Pipi, saying seriously, “Well, I won’t count on you. But please tell me how to deal with the entrance exam. It’s much better to know the approximate scope and method of the exam than being confused in my current situation.”

“That’s acceptable.” Chen Pippi happily swallowed half a bowl of the crab porridge, and vaguely continued. “However, talking about such things is of no use.”

“Why not?” Ning Que asked in anxiety.

“Because exam methods are all different each time the Second Floor opens. The specific content of the exam has been set in advance by the Headmaster a few years ago. You may be required to write a piece of calligraphy, or to draw a picture, or to go swimming in the wetlands, or they may see who will eat faster. Speaking of that year…”

Chen Pipi started introducing it with great interest, while Ning Que’s mind had wandered away to somewhere else. When hearing that the exam might be about writing and painting, he got a buzzing sound in his mind and a great sense of happiness emerged. However, the sense of happiness or surprise immediately turned into frustration and absurdity after hearing the following words.

“Wait, wait, wait, wait, swimming or eating? What the hell is the exam about?”

Chen Pippi put down the crab porridge, and said looking at him innocently, “I’m not the Headmaster, how could I know what it’s about? But this information was personally told to me by Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters, so it might be true.”

Ning Que slightly raised his brows, looking at his fat face, and asked with hesitation, “Then… What’s the exam that you took part in about?”

Upon hearing this question, Chen Pipi gently waved his sleeves to flip off the dust that did not actually exist, and then an eased smile appeared on his face. Then he said softly with a really calm style, “I’ve told you that I’m not a common genius in cultivation. That year I took an A+ in six courses and then was directly admitted into the Second Floor. The Headmaster smiled to welcome me on the mountain road, while Eldest Brother genially rubbed my head. And I needn’t sit for the exam to test my abilities anymore. This… could be called free admittance?”

Ning Que stared at the complacency that was poorly concealed in Chen Pipi’s small bean-shaped eyes, and he suddenly gave birth to a strong impulse to give him a hard punch. Yet he had no choice but to sulkily give up the idea when thinking that the fat guy was a cultivator who was even more vigorous than Prince Long Qing in the Knowing Destiny State. Then he said with a sneer, “In my opinion, you’re like a large pot of steamed bread.”

Chen Pippi touched his head, and curiously asked, “White and fat, but really cute?”

“No, I mean you are indeed a foodie!” Ning Que exclaimed, “You claim yourself the baby of the Academy and the most favored little brother of the Second Floor, but you still don’t know what the exam is about. I actually pinned all my hopes on you and bought you such an expensive bowl of porridge!”

Thinking of Prince Long Qing’s protracted posture in the opening of the Second Floor tomorrow and thinking of his own dismal situation and Chen Pipi’s helpless look, he got more irritated, then he took the bowl of the porridge back and quickly poured it into his own stomach.

“Oh, how can you eat it all!”

Chen Pippi seemed rather angry, not knowing whether it was because his crab porridge was stolen or he was scolded as a foodie by Ning Que. He indignantly denounced him, pointing at Ning Que’s nose. “I’m a useless foodie, but without me, you ah…”

“I’m… indeed a dead dog.”

Ning Que bowed his head, and his expression could not be seen. Only his tired voice and gloomy tone could be heard.

“Actually I always consider myself as a real genius who learns things fast, including killing horses, cattle, and chickens, but I am really discouraged about cultivation. I’ve struggled with it for many years and finally made it out last year. However, I don’t have any confidence in confronting Prince Long Qing. Thus, I subconsciously come to you for help.”

He looked up and said in self-mockery, “I’m dying to enter the Second Floor, but I really have no confidence in defeating Long Qing and finally becoming the unique one.”

Chen Pipi had witnessed Ning Que progressing from an ordinary lad who knew nothing about cultivation to the present state step by step over the past six months. He was sure that this friend of the same age was also a genius, but it was interesting that Ning Que was not aware of it due to his lack of a normal frame of reference. Needless to say that Chen Pipi, and even Prince Long Qing, were both beyond the reach of Ning Que, since the time he spent in the world of cultivation was too short, after all.

Looking at Ning Que’s expression of self-deprecation, he gave birth to a strong sense of sympathy, and then sighed before smilingly saying, “Though I can understand your distress of being an ordinary person, but… You still can ask me if you have any questions about cultivation, just as you have over the past few months. In that case, there aren’t too many differences whether you can enter the Second Floor or not.”

Ning Que shook his head and replied, “I’m learning from you presently, but I will never surpass you no matter how well I learn. But what if I have the chance to learn from the Dean?”

Hearing these words, Chen Pippi stared with his small, round eyes and immediately ended up pitying him, and shouted, “If you reach my level, you won’t be dissatisfied!”

Ning Que wearily leaned back against the wall, closing his eyes. He was too exhausted to talk and seemed disappointed to the extreme.

Chen Pipi felt sorry and suddenly raised his two tight eyebrows on his forehead, then whispered, “In fact… not all the students who can enter the Second Floor are geniuses in cultivation. Sixth Brother is a good blacksmith born by the Good blacksmith.”

Ning Que suddenly opened his eyes.

Instead of watching him, Chen Pipi continued with a frown. “The Headmaster holds the nature of students in high esteem. Yet it remains essentially the same although methods of the exam at the opening of the Second Floor vary every time. So, no matter what type of exam it’s going to be tomorrow, your first priority is to stick to your heart, and make it to the ultimate, and then maybe you can have a chance.”

“To the ultimate?” Ning Que said to himself.

“It’s late now, please go back.”

Chen Pipi took a glance out of the window at the stars in the spring night, and said, “There are only a few hours left before the opening of the Second Floor.”

…

…

After returning the Old Brush Pen Shop, Ning Que could not fall asleep. He lay in his bed, staring at the ceiling above his head. And his seemingly calm eyes were actually hidden with anxiety and loss, due to which his body seemed tense.

Even he himself could not make it clear why he had such a strong desire to enter the Second Floor of the Academy—presumably due to his immense yearning for the world of cultivation. For instance, his arduous efforts, such as blood vomiting for getting upstairs last year, made the love of each cell in his body for that world deepen, and as he finally stepped into the magical world and saw more strange scenery last year, he was increasingly eager to see more scenery.

When people had gone through plenty of hardships and finally mounted a dangerous peak, they would look around and find a higher peak amidst the white clouds faintly in the distance. If one could overcome his fatigue, then he always wanted to reach the higher peak, to see more beautiful scenery that he had never seen. Ascending the tower to view the mountain scenery, climbing a high peak to view the city scenery, and sitting on clouds to view the scenery of the entire world—a meaningful life should have been like this.

Sangsang sat on the bed staring at his cheek, and wanted to pass him some power by holding his hand with slight strength. She would like to transfer some kind of confidence with her reluctant, but sincere, smile.

At night in spring of the 14th year of Tianqi, the entire Chang’an City, and even the whole world, were concerned about the opening of the Second Floor tomorrow. However, no one knew how important it was to that ordinary lad who was living in the old shop of the rough lane in Eastern City of Chang’an City, who had been mercilessly predicated to be incapable of cultivating.

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